caribbeanLover

Thanks for this topic, exactly what I needed. The website is amazing, thanks!

Quote: Originally Posted by ebredhawk tonya, i completely agree with all of the other girls... ohio has nothing on MX, at all!! i should know!! a lake is not the same as the ocean.. you do what you want to make this your dream wedding and don't worry about comparisons! you are giving everyone an excuse vacation in paradise for heaven's sake! take a deep breath and bask in the glory of getting your dress!! yayyyy di getting your keys!! no more inspection/closing/home buying craziness.. now you get to decorate your new home! and also a huge score on the invites! can't wait to see those bookings rack up for you! michele, there is a reason i'm not getting married at home!!! i laughed out loud when i read that.. but i completely agree! ohio vs. mexico.. tough call! i completely forgot about tonya winning that free photog too... hello lady, you are so set!! soooo i practiced my centerpieces this weekend and they were super blah... i'm a clean lines kinda gal and they just looked messy. i found a picture of what i really want them to look like but can't for the life of me figure out what kind of flower this is (it would be perfect with my white/black/pink theme). anyone have any ideas? even the lady who's doing my flowers didn't know! also, i finally went to my parents' house and took pictures of my OOT bag things that are over there. i'll post those either tonight or tomorrow! I was going to do the exact same centerpiece, until I realized how much they would weigh.. so I made something totaly different. Let me know what you guys think be honest. It's very light on top of it all, I got the sets at the dollar store, so each centerpiece will cost $6. (But does it look real fake?)

Pls everyone be honest. Are they even nice?! or way to much and looks to fake?

Congrats on the house!!!!! And your right, you can keep all the things you were going to do. No one will think you copied it, most people know your wedding was already planned before you went to theirs. I like the whole speach thing, I'm sure you'll be able to come up with something funny.

so I ended up going to the dollar store, each centerpiece will cost me $6! including vase. I will post pics tom.

Quote: Originally Posted by Soon-2-B well I called the consulate and got the most uninspired answer: "Um no you shouldn't have any problems with that." So I asked if there was a form or a permit, similar to what Karla said, and again, I got: "Um no you shouldn't have any problems with that." When I go to the consulate directly to have my documents processed I'll ask again. Worst thing would be for her to actually get there and have all her food taken away. I know there is allot of rules with things like this. But I know it is possible. But how much work, and money it will cost I am not sure. The people you should call is the company your flying with. They will be able to answer any of your question, with real answer's!

I agree with all the post. I had the same problem, and the FI said the same thing, allow the guest to change back into the bathing suites. My plan: Ceremony is at 2:30, takes 15 mins, but then I'm adding the sand ceremony, another 15 mins. So it's 3pm now. Cocktails and a tost. Then to pictures, all our guest will be included in some, and for those they are not, will probably want to take their own pictures. Now it's 4-4:15. We will head on over to a bar to have a few more drinks and play some wedding games. At some point most the men will have to go change their sandals to shoes for the restaurant. It'll be 6:30 by then. It wont be as long as you think!

Quote: Originally Posted by stonetkta I just joined and would love to get a copy of your chapstick template, but it won't let me! thanks, Kim Hi! and welcome! you need 150 post to be able to open templates. So keep on posting!!

Carolina did confirm a time with me, however she warn me many times that the time may change for the ceremony, it depends on the judge, she gave me 2:30. But they way none of you got a time, I believe my time will change and I wont actually know until I arrive.(or the day before lol) She also confirmed with me I am able to get the restaurant I wanted (La Uva) she did say how I might be shaing it with another bride, i hope it's you Courtney!! If they build in time the gazebo over looking the ocean for my wedding, I will have to pick that. But I'm still stuck on the beach right now. The way I see it, no matter where you are, poeple will be watching in their bathingsuites. I also was told the security is real good with keeping ppl back to avoid them in our pictures. I was in the mind frame before, i didn't want ppl watching me. But then realize,ppl like weddings. Let them watch, it's not like their in the wedding lol! I'm getting excited!! Nonnie, centerpiece: It's crazy how much they are charge , but I went to michaels yesterday, to make 4 centerpieces with 6 stem per, it would have cost me over $150. So I'm still looking for something other then spending 60$ per centerpiece.

Quote: Originally Posted by bride2010 I just drove around the city to three different Michael's locations to round up those travel cards. I always loved them before, but kept holding off on buying them. It paid off as they are now on sale and I got them for $0.75 (CAD) each! I'm so excited! I'm going to be putting stickers with our theme on the front. Have you contacted your wedding co-ordinator down there to see how much the fresh alternative will be from a florist they know/use? I know they usually hike up the prices at the resorts, but it may still be cheaper if your arrangement's not too complicated. Worth the try... Yeah, that was my whole point, in trying to make my own, the resort is charging $60 per centerpiece. So I will look around some dollar stores.. if nothing I think I will have to surrander and pay $60 a pop!! ;( Thanks again for the advice, appreciate so much!

So I decided I needed to go to Michaels. The thing is, the closes to me is a 2 hour drive each way. I said this was the day I would do it, get all my faux flowers from there for my centerpieces and BM bouquet. Well I didn't realize how $$ they actually are, and on top of it, they had an amazing deal of 50% off all stock. SO I started calculating how much it would come up to with the 50% off, I said I'll just do 4 centerpieces for now.. well that would have come up to $145 without tax (needed 5 stems per centerpiece) I mean that's crazy.. I can get real flower centerpiece for $15... does anyone of a suggestion where I might be able to go?

Quote: Originally Posted by sap I am doing my wedding in the gazebo. You can decide when you get there which location suits you, so I wouldn't stress over it until then. The gazebo area is awesome, private and picture perfect. The beach was nice too. There is an arch placed on the beach as well as at the gazebo. I think a special arch may cost extra, but she explained how there would be arches when describing the areas. Also, they are building another gazebo closer to the beach. She was unsure when it would be complete, but stated that if it was done by time of our wedding, she would show it to us as an option as well. I loved the Bavaro gazebo and have no intention on changing my mind. The actual gazebo itself was basic in size and style, nothing fancy but the area overall was just lovely. Feel free to post anything you are wondering about and I'll be more than happy to let you know what Carolina has told me. Again, I don't know if there is a difference because of where we are staying in the resort. Bavaro vs Punta Cana. Thank you so so much!! your an amazing help!! I was I had that much info! I have my mind set on the beach, unless of course weather does not permitte. Not sure who Rebecca is, is that you? Thank you for the pictures of the beach ceremony. SOooooooooo beautiful!! I want it!!

Quote: Originally Posted by isy_beau Hi everyone, as I can see we are a few getting married in april 2010 I am looking for couples who would be interested into sharing the cost of a photographer: I have found a wonderfull photographer that lives in the Ottawa/Gatineau area. the way it work's is that we can be 4 couples that get married within the two weeks of her stay, we split the cost of her trip and then we each pay for the photography package that we want. exemple: 2118$/4= 530$ (trip) + 800$ (package) = 1330$ you can go see her web site Genevieve Albert, Photographe or on facebook genevieve albert photographe®, her e-mail adress is [email protected] we are already two couples interested in her services, so two more couples with us would be great you can always pm me if you have any questions!!! I think you have a cute idea! Do you really want to spend that much?! your paying someone to go on vacation, and then you have to pay for the package you want. Kinda seems allot?! I got a package from HCD for $690 or something like that. That is half the cost your photographer is charging. There is a few other photographer's in DR that would be half the cost. Just because people have to pay for their vaca. I thought i just let you know there is alot of photographer's in DR and it would be atleast have the price. Let us know what you decided!!

Quote: Originally Posted by sap Yes, I am absolutely sure. Emails prior to visiting, conversation while visiting, confirmation email post visit (all before my deciding to make it a private reception). She specifically showed me the spot where the dances could be held. My communication with her was between July and August. I don't know if the fact that we are staying at the Bavaro makes a difference though...I can't imagine why. Also, I apologize on my note of $40 for flowers. The $40 flowers were specifically for the lily/rose combo and the sunflower bouquet. I actually sent a confirmation email listing all the things we are expecting and that we discussed with Carolina. I explained to her that I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page before we start booking. It took about 2 weeks for her to respond, but she did and everything was confirmed. I think it's good to do this so far in advance so that even if it takes her a while to respond, all these questions are answered now and not a few months away when you would want a quicker response. Thank you very much for confirming the dance at the restaurant and the cost of the bouquet!! Maybe I should list the things we expect and see if we are on the same page. By chance did you find out if the arch on the beach is included in the package? I see alot of pics of ppls ceremony on the beach from our resort, they all have the arch... but when I look at the 'extras' it says $250 for the arch?!

I found mine from Avon, for only 2.49$ and they are just a little smaller.Since god knows how many one has to take with them! Is there Avon in the US?

very nice! thank you for shareing

Quote: Originally Posted by flipflop.tee Found this one online...soo cute I want it! It comes with a stopper for travelling after the ceremony but I don't know?? My FI and I were thinking we could do the ceremony here when we have a our legal ceremony just to have something tie into the beach theme. Then we don't have to travel too far with it and it wont be destroyed! My Divine Wedding: Heart Shaped Unity Sand Ceremony Set That is a really good idea, less luggage weight as well. I will def consider this. Thanks for sharing the site!

Quote: Originally Posted by emme Tonight is the night ladies!! I'm excited and nervous about what the evening will bring and what my friends have in store for me... I will post pictures of my tackiest girls as soon as I have them...and after the hangover subsides of course yaaaah! Have fun!!! can't wait to see pics!

Quote: Originally Posted by smith3576 I was at Michael's today and they have these vases (40% off right now!) that I think would work really well for the sand ceremony. They are two panes of glass with a metal design in the middle where you're supposed to pour the water. But it would be great for sand! The effect would be "floating" sand. THere are different metal designs (rectangle, hourglass, hearts, etc.) that would shape the sand differently. It would be very easy to fill it to the top of the metal shape and then tape over the top to keep the sand in. I'll have to see if I can get a picture of it. thanks so much for sharing, I'm heading tomorrow for a 2 hour drive to go to Michaels I will def check that out!

Quote: Originally Posted by MilitaryMrs.s-to be Congrats cherrybomb and sap!!! Sap - Are you sure she said you could have your dances there if you didn't rent out the entire resturant? She told me I couldn't, that management didn't allow it there was a post that said Carolina doesn't stay around, you'll be able to do your dance. If it turnes out we can't, we'll stick with our idea!

Quote: Originally Posted by jac28 we finished our site....i love it....i just feel like were missing something....we haven't registered yet so we will add that when we do. check it out Mike Snoreck & Jaclyn Nolan's wedding - July 17,2010 what do ya think? is it missing something? Beautiful! you did an amazing job, I like yours so much better then mine. Our Destination Wedding Website | Welcome | TracyandMike

Quote: Originally Posted by sap Hi! I am officially booked for July 17, 2010 at Grand Palladium Bavaro. Is there a reason why others are choosing the Punta Cana? I visited the resort in Aug 09 and it is lovely. Nothing super fancy, but very nice. We are having our wedding at the gazebo followed by a champagne toast then a private ($1000) reception at La Uva. Carolina is sending me the menu options in her next email to me. She is a one woman show. Very busy when we met her in August, but when we were there, treated us like she had nothing else happening, even though we knew she did! I loved that and did not take any extra time from her other than seeing a few rooms, the gazebo and restaurant and I was convinced we'd have a great day. We expect approximately 80 people so the $1000 extra for private reception is a bargaaaaaain. The floral bouquets were nice, but I'm not crazy about them and may send some pictures to see if upgrading is possible. We are using HDC for photo, video and ttd. I read great reviews and the packages offered are awesome. TA Dina is helping with the travel and hotel arrangements for our guests. She has been great. Good luck GP Brides!! Hi!! Congrats. I'm personaly going with punta cana side because it's alot cheaper then any of the other palladiums. For 80 people, $1000 is great. I may only have 15 ppl if that, so I'm still unsure if it's worth it or not. I so despartly want to introduce the party,bouquet and garter toss, father daughter dance. I too booked with HDC, I'm very excited, he seems so nice, and will be easy to work with,I too will be doing the TD session! La Uva, you do get to pick your menu, you can choose each item from any restaurant menu, dessert from the spanish, main course with asian, it's all up to you. I don't understand however, I am using the same resaturant, but it wont be private, but yours will be. I wonder, maybe they just don't book the restaurant that are having private.? If you get some pics of upgrade bouquets, maybe you could let me know, I would love to see some. I am trying not to contact Carolina unless it's a must, I don't want to stress over not getting a reply!lol I do like the idea they set speakers up so your not having to rent a dj for private reception.

aww what a nice MOH and your so lucky to have one like that. Beautiful flutes!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by shan13 We are doing one for our families, mainly because our Mom's are not going to Vegas with us! I think there are lots of creative ways to do an AHR w/o breakiong the bank..since I am not doing a lot for Vegas i.e. centerpieces, I am making the centerpieces myself for the venue..we are using a legion hall(think someone else posted this) and my supv caters weddings so she is doing ours..I am saving for the dj..and I also didn't plan our AHR right away..it is gonna be sometime in Aug or Sept...we are getting married in June.. legion all the way! it may not look all fancy mancy for a wedding, but it'll do it's job, and you can't go wrong with the price.

Quote: Originally Posted by CherryBomb Hi there! My fiance and I are getting married at the Palladium Punta Cana on Friday, April 16th, 2010! We are so excited but I'm getting stressed because I've got a lot of questions for Carolina but I'm not getting 100% clear answers. We want a beach wedding ceremony, dinner at El Arrecife, and then a beach reception with a private bartender and DJ (we have booked through Carolina) We have booked a videographer that was recommended by Carolina. I'm still working on booking a photographer. Is everyone choosing their cake and flowers in advance? I didn't really like any of the pics of the cakes or flowers that Carolina sent me. Any bouquet recommendations? I thought I read on here that someone was told they have to pay $60/person for the reception Carolina didn't tell me anything like that so I have emailed her to confirm. The only extra cost she said would be for a private dinner that would cost $1000 to rent out a restaurant but we're not going to bother with that. Any suggestions, advise etc would be appreciated! Cheers, looking forward to meeting the other brides that week! Hi!! congrats!! The private reception it's $1000 this, you can have a dj, or hoock up ur Ipod and dance, it'll just be your guest at the restaurant.If you don't want to spend that kind of cash, you get a part of a restaurant. No dancing allowed, I am not 100% sure on this, but I think not allowed music either. I heard you can spend $60pp to have a private dinner on the beach. If your doing it at one of the rest and you choose not to have it private, it's included in your package. Carolina even makes menus for your guest. We are all choosing our flower's and ect when we get there and have a meeting with carolina. If you don't like the bouquet she shows you, you can upgrade for an extra fee. If you saw some pics of the cake they make, you don't like it, bring your own pic of one you do like, and carolina will make sure the chef do their best, but there may be another extra fee for upgrading. I'm looking forward to meeting you, when will you guys be arriving? pls always feel free to ask questions